Former Army brat Morgan Albright has finally planted roots in a friendly neighborhood near Baltimore. Her friend and roommate Nina helps her make the mortgage payments, as does Morgan’s job as a bartender. But after she and Nina host their first dinner party—attended by Luke, the flirtatious IT guy who’d been chatting her up at the bar—her carefully built world is shattered. The back door glass is broken, cash and jewelry are missing, her car is gone, and Nina lies dead on the floor.
Soon, a horrific truth emerges: It was Morgan who let the monster in. “Luke” is actually a cold-hearted con artist named Gavin who targets a particular type of woman, steals her assets and identity, and then commits his ultimate goal: murder.
What the FBI tells Morgan is beyond chilling. Nina wasn’t his type. Morgan is. Nina was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. And Morgan’s nightmare is just beginning. Soon she has no choice but to flee to her mother’s home in Vermont. While she struggles to build something new, she meets another man, Miles Jameson. He isn’t flashy or flirtatious, and his family business has deep roots in town. But Gavin is still out there hunting new victims, and he hasn’t forgotten the one who got away.
Release Date: May 23, 2023
Heat: Sensual
Publisher: Macmillan
Imprint: St. Martin’s Press
Price: $14.99
Morgan’s life shifted after she trusted the wrong man. A man that killed her best friend and stole everything from her. A man that forced her to flee and go into hiding. Morgan is tired of hiding, and she is trying to reclaim her life back. She meets a new guy, Miles, and though is nothing like the last guy, she is still hesitant to move forward. Not to mention that she still has to watch her back because the guy who wants to hurt her is still seeking his chance.
Normally, reading a book by Ms. Roberts is always good. I rarely get any doozies. In this case, the story caused me to straddle the fence. Initially, Identity starts off very strong. We get a sense of who Morgan is. We understand her drive and her need to succeed. After one bad decision, her life is diverted. From there, I still expect the story to continue with the same pacing, but it slows down.
Morgan reconnects with her family, and everything stalls for me. The story no longer felt like a suspense novel. We know who the culprit is, so there is no guessing. It also didn’t quite feel like a romance novel. This is a weird case of not executing the perfect romantic suspense novel. The connection with the main MCs felt off as there is no real build-up to their romance.
I have to admit a part of my hesitation with this book came from me reading it versus listening to it. I tend to listen to all of the author’s books instead of reading them. With everything going on in the story, I had to pause and question if I didn’t fully connect with the book because I was reading it instead of listening.
I did like that the formula in which the author tells a story didn’t change. Some may say she is a bit formulaic, and I would agree, but she has a method that works. I love getting caught up in the family dynamic as well.
While this may not have been my favorite by Nora Roberts, I will continue to read her novels.
~ Samantha
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